kidfriendly

Need to plan last minute summer vacation. Currently considering starting in Berlin (and possibly squeezing in a short trip to Poland if there is anything worthwhile and nearby) to do urban/history/cultural thing, then ending up somewhere in the Alps to hike, be outdoors, and enjoy beautiful scenery.

Any suggestions for the second part? Would consider part of Austria and/or Switzerland. Not sure where to focus. End point needs to be nearby or en route to major city so we can take international flight back home.

Have about 12-14 days total. Very well-traveled family of 5. Thanks for your ideas!

Aramis

Considering that you are looking to be near a major airport for the return leg, using Munich and visiting the Bavarian Alps makes a lot of sense but it looks like you want to visit a second country. Flying out of Zurich is a possibility, as well, but it would take longer to get there and into the Swiss Alps than it would to Munich (8 hours vs. 6 hours) and the cost will be significantly higher in Switzerland because of the strength of the Franc.

Salzburg and the Salzkammergut region are easily accessible from Munich and you could easily combine Garmisch, Berchtesgaden, Koenigsee, Hallstatt, into an Alps adventure.

At about 2.5 hours from Salzburg, by train, Vienna becomes an option for a departure airport and another place to visit.

As for place in Poland near Berlin that are generally considered "worthwhile", Wroclaw, would fit the bill but it is about 4 hours away by train. Have you considered visiting Dresden, Bautzen, and Goerlitz? You could cross the border into Poland from Goerlitz. Bautzen and Goerlitz are both terrific towns that you might not get back to see unless returning to this corner of Germany.

Ingo

For hiking and the outdoors I'd recommend - if you are not totally set on the Alps - the National Park Saxon-Bohemian Switzerland on the German/Czech border south of Dresden. Saves you a lot of travelling around. As Aramis said, you could see Wroclaw (direct trains from Berlin), then head via Görlitz and Bautzen to Dresden (direct trains, too) to do the cultural thing. The National Park doesn't have the huge mountains, but is very romantic, has the flat-top mountains, canyons, bizarre rock formations, more than 1000 km hiking trails, biking trails, it is the place where free climbing was first done in the world, you can do canoeing on the Elbe river, and much more.

And you can fly back from Berlin.